It wasn’t that long ago that the WEC’s bantamweight division appeared little more than a showcase for then-champion Miguel Torres.

My, how things have changed.

At this past weekend’s WEC 47 event in Columbus, Ohio, Joseph Benavidez (12-1 MMA, 4-1 WEC) stunned Torres with a one-sided submission win and likely earned himself a shot at the 135-pound title. But Scott Jorgensen (9-3 MMA, 5-2 WEC) also landed one of the more memorable finishes in recent memory in his bout with Chad George, and he made a legitimate claim for contender status.

“I think I’m right there up at the top,” Jorgensen said at the evening’s post-event press conference. “I beat (Takeya) Mizugaki. I went out there and finished Chad George quick, decisively. I think I’m right up there.”

It’s hard to argue against the Idaho native. Jorgensen has won five of his past six contests in the WEC, and the lone loss came by a razor-thin split-decision to Antonio Banuelos.

Jorgensen’s guillotine-choke finish of George, in which “Savage’s” feet were lifted off the ground before he frantically tapped just 31 seconds into the fight, would likely have been “Submission of the Night” had Benavidez not tapped Torres. Add to that a “Fight of the Night” win over Mizugaki this past December, and it’s easy to see why Jorgensen is quickly developing a loyal following.

Of course, Benavidez’s lone career loss came in an August 2009 “Fight of the Night” effort against new champion Dominick Cruz (15-1 MMA, 5-1 WEC), so the idea of a rematch between the pair is clearly a potential future main event.

WEC general manager Reed Harris said a decision on Cruz’s next opponent should come soon.

“We don’t talk a lot about where we’re going with fights until the fights happen,” Harris said. “It’s one of these things I’ve learned from doing this a long time: Don’t make plans because anything can happen out there. These guys are wearing four-ounce gloves. They’re highly trained.”

“This week, Sean Shelby will sit down and start mapping it his next fight, and as soon as we know it, we’ll announce it. But we obviously have plans for him. He’s our title-holder, and he’ll need to defend that belt.”

And while just one year ago, Torres seemed to be the unbeatable champion of the WEC, Shelby and Harris now have options.